Tafsir of Al-A'raf 7:40

"Indeed, those who denied Our verses"—those indicative of the principles of religion and the rulings of the Sharia, such as the proofs for the existence of the Creator and His Oneness, and those indicating Prophethood, the Afterlife, and the like—"and were arrogant toward them"—meaning, they exaggerated in despising them and showing no concern for them, did not pay heed to them, turned their eyes away from them, cast them behind their backs, did not clothe themselves in the vestments of their requirements, and did not act upon them—"the gates of heaven will not be opened for them"—that is, for their souls when they die, just as they are opened for the souls of the believers.

Ahmad, an-Nasa’i, al-Hakim (who authenticated it), al-Bayhaqi, and others narrated from Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "The angels attend to the dying person. If he is a righteous man, they say: 'Come out, O pure soul that was in a pure body. Come out praiseworthy, and receive good tidings of rest and fragrance and a Lord who is pleased, not angry.' This continues to be said to it until it comes out. Then it is ascended to heaven, and a request is made for it to be opened, and it is said: 'Who is this?' They say: 'So-and-so, son of so-and-so.' [It is said:] 'Welcome to the pure soul that was in a pure body. Enter praiseworthy, and receive good tidings of rest and fragrance and a Lord who is pleased, not angry.' And this continues to be said to it until it reaches the seventh heaven. But if the man is evil, it is said: 'Come out, O wicked soul that was in a wicked body. Come out blameworthy, and receive good tidings of boiling water, pus, and other things of that likeness.' This continues to be said to it until it comes out. Then it is ascended to heaven, and a request is made for it to be opened, and it is said: 'Who is this?' They say: 'So-and-so, son of so-and-so.' It is said: 'No welcome to the wicked soul that was in a wicked body. Return blameworthy, for the gates of heaven will not be opened for you.' Then it is sent down from heaven and ends up in the grave." Reports regarding this are numerous.

It has been said: The gates of heaven are not opened for their deeds nor for their supplications. This has been narrated from al-Hasan and Mujahid. It has also been said: They are not opened for their souls nor for their deeds, which is narrated from Ibn Jurayj. It is also said: The meaning is that no deed of theirs ascends, nor does blessing descend upon them.

The fact that the heaven has gates that open for righteous deeds and pure souls—as the gates of acceptance have been opened for them according to the texts mentioned regarding this—is a possible matter which the Truthful One (the Prophet) has informed us of, so there is no need for allegorical interpretation. That the heaven is spherical and does not accept piercing or closing (khrq wa-ilti'am) is something for which there is no proof according to us. The evident view of the scholars of the "new astronomy" is the possibility of piercing and closing upon the celestial spheres. Some claim that the assertion of "gates" does not contradict the claim of the impossibility of piercing and closing, but this view is subject to scrutiny, as is not hidden.

The ta in (tufattahu) is for the feminine gender of "gates," and the stress (tashdid) denotes the frequency of the action, as the context does not suit it otherwise. Abu Amr recited it with lightness (takhfif), and Hamza and al-Kisa'i recited it both with lightness and with the ya (masculine). This was narrated from al-Bara’ ibn ‘Azib, may Allah be pleased with him, from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, because the femininity is not "real" (non-living) and the verb precedes the subject despite the existence of a separator. It was also recited as a passive voice (tuftahu), with "gates" in the accusative case, due to the ta (feminine prefix) on the basis that the verb is attributed to the "verses" metaphorically as they are the cause of that, and with the ya on the basis that it is attributed to Allah the Exalted.

"Nor will they enter Paradise until the jamal—that is, the camel—"—when it has reached the age of being a bazl (a mature camel), its plural being jamal and ajmal, and the latter is pluralized as jamalat. It is narrated that Ibn Mas’ud was asked about the jamal, and he said: "It is the male of the she-camel." Al-Hasan said: "It is the son of the she-camel that stands on four legs in the pen." This is a way of treating the questioner as ignorant, and an indication that seeking another meaning is an affectation. The Arabs use this in a proverb to signify enormity of size, as if it were said: "Until that which is proverbial for its enormity enters..."

"...enters into the sum of the needle"—meaning, the eye of the needle. This is also a proverb they use for a narrow passage. This is something that cannot happen, and thus, that which is dependent upon it cannot happen; indeed, [Divine] power does not relate to it due to its impossibility so long as the enormous remains in its enormity and the narrow in its narrowness. Power only relates to absolute possibilities, and the possibility of entry is contingent upon the shrinking of the enormous or the widening of the narrow. Such expressions of the "impossible limit" have proliferated in their speech; they say: "I will not do such-and-such until the crow turns grey, until the qar (tar) turns white, or until the Qarizan (two men) return." Their intent is: "I will never do such-and-such."

Ibn Abbas, Ibn Jubayr, Mujahid, 'Ikrimah, and ash-Sha'bi recited al-jummal (with a damma on the jim and a fatha on the stressed mim), like al-qummal (lice). Abd al-Karim, Hanzala, Ibn Abbas, and Ibn Jubayr—in another narration—recited al-jumal (damma and fatha with lightness), like naghar. In another narration from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, he recited al-jumul (damma on the jim and sukun on the mim), like qufl (lock), and al-jumul (with two dammas), like nusub. Abu as-Sumal recited al-jamal (fatha on the jim and sukun on the mim), like habl (rope). All of these have been interpreted as the thick rope made of hemp; it is said it is the cable of a ship.

It was recited fi summi (with damma or kasra on the sin), and they are two dialects for it; the fatha is more well-known. Its meaning is the small hole, absolutely. It is said that its origin is that which is in a limb, like the eye and the ear. Abdullah (ibn Mas'ud) recited fi summi al-mikhyt (with kasra or fatha on the mim). Mikhyt and khiyat mean that with which one sews, like hizam and mahzam, or qina' and miqna'.

"And thus"—meaning, like that horrific recompense—"do We recompense the criminals"—meaning their kind, and those [mentioned] are included in it primarily. The root of jurm (crime/sin) is the cutting of the fruit from the tree. It is said: ajrama (he committed a crime), meaning he became a possessor of jurm (body/substance), just as atamara (he possessed fruit) and athmara (he produced fruit). It is used in their speech for acquiring that which is disliked, and it is almost never used for praiseworthy acquisition.